1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is primarily directed to a device for translating a test sequence into a burn-in sequence for a logic circuit and/or a digital circuit, a method for burn-in operation of a logic circuit and/or a digital circuit and a device for burn-in operation of a logic circuit and/or a digital circuit.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As a result of the improvements achieved in the performances of logic circuits and digital circuits, the potential applications of such circuits are constantly increasing. Certain fields such as aeronautics, for example, require total reliability of these circuits. It has thus become necessary to test logic circuits and digital circuits prior to initial use. In order to provide enhanced reliability of said circuits and to ensure not only that the circuit operates after it has been fabricated but also that it is not liable to fail during the first hours of operation, it is therefore found necessary to perform operations known as "burn-in" sequences. "Burn-in" consists, for example, in operating the logic circuit and/or digital circuit over a period of 168 hours at 125.degree. C. During this period, the circuit is caused to perform the maximum number of functions which it is expected to carry out during use.
It is a known practice to generate burn-in sequences for logic and/or digital circuits by hand. This method, however, is becoming less and less efficacious and increasingly costly as the logic and/or digital circuit to be tested becomes more complex.
The device in accordance with the invention makes it possible to generate from a test sequence a burn-in sequence for a logic circuit and/or a digital circuit. This permits a saving of time and a reduction in cost of burn-in operation of these circuits. Furthermore, by employing the same type of sequence both for burn-in and for testing, a test performed after burn-in operation of a circuit would increase the probability of detection of a fault in said circuit.